The Bucks won their division in Lillard's first year and locked up the Eastern Conference's No. 3 seed prior to a first-round upset. They finished fifth in the conference last season and fell to the eventual NBA runner-up Indiana Pacers in the opening round. And with that, Lillard's chances of earning a ring before his eventual retirement dwindled.

Back on April 27, what had already been a rough and injury-marred ending to the season for point guard Damian Lillard got a whole lot rougher and more injury-marred. He had missed the final month of the regular slate because of blood clots in his calf but attempted to come back for the Bucks in the